Roswell Johnson Books in Order

The Roswell Johnson books shift Chris Colfer's storytelling from fairy tale kingdoms to deep space, while keeping his focus on funny dialogue, found family, and kids who feel out of place. The series follows Roswell Johnson, a science obsessed eleven year old named after the famous UFO town.

In Roswell Johnson Saves the World! he lives with his grandparents and spends his days dreaming up conspiracy theories about alien life. After a disastrous science fair, he is accidentally abducted by two small gray aliens on a routine mission and whisked away from Earth. Before they can return him home, their ship is captured by reptilian invaders called Reptoids who are quietly preparing to wipe out the planet.

Roswell escapes along with a mismatched group of prisoners, including a literal minded cyborg, a nervous mantis like alien, and a confident dog woman pilot. Together they have to navigate strange planets, galactic politics, and their own clashing personalities as they race to warn Earth and find a way to stop the Reptoids' plan.

Roswell Johnson Saves the Galaxy! picks up after that victory. Back on Earth, Roswell is bored and grounded, but out in space something is very wrong. Ships and entire stars are disappearing, a notorious general has broken out of prison, and even the Milky Way's leaders cannot explain what is happening. When Roswell's grandparents and several residents of their care home vanish, he reunites with his alien friends to investigate.

The sequel sends the crew deeper into the galaxy, where they uncover new technology that threatens the whole solar system and learn that Roswell himself is more connected to the crisis than anyone guessed. The tone stays brisk and joke filled, but the books also touch on grief, racism, and what it means to build family across huge differences.

For readers who like fast paced science fiction with heart, Roswell Johnson is an easy place to start. The series can be read on its own, or alongside The Land of Stories and A Tale of Magic as another corner of the larger universe Colfer is building for middle grade readers.